The Insiders
by SummerLove16
Summary: There were many rules here that could be broken-enough late nights and hungover mornings had proven that. The only one that couldn't be? Fraternizing with the guests. But what kind of summer would it be at Pinewood Resort if there wasn't a little drama to spice things up?


BPOV

"Okay, Bells. Good luck, eh? Call if you need anything. Or just call. Okay?"

Charlie smiled at me from the driver's seat of the cruiser. I nodded, my ponytail flopping against my head, wispy pieces already falling free. This was the most I had heard Charlie speak all day. Actually, the sentences he had just strung together were possibly the most I had heard him speak since I had moved in with him a year ago.

It had been a long year. Just after graduation, I had found my boyfriend of a year, Mike, entangled with the school slut, Jessica. Then, the next thing you know, Jessica's announcing that she's pregnant, and she and Mike are welcoming some snot nosed little bundle of joy into the world. Unreal. Despite that little fiasco, I graduated with honours, finished my first year at Dartmouth. The only problem there, of course, was the fact that even with the scholarship money I'd accumulated, there's no way the salary of a small-town cop will pay for an ivy league school for more than a year. First year had been taken care of, but second year loomed large over me. Which is how I ended up here, suitcase in tow, at one of the most prestigious country clubs on the west coast.

"Sure thing, Charlie. I'll give you a call once I'm settled in. And give Mom a call, okay? So she doesn't worry."

Charlie nodded mutely, and began unloading my suitcases from the trunk. A woman wearing a blue polo shirt with STAFF embroidered on the left side of her chest came rushing over, her eyes sparkling. She didn't look much older than me, and stood at least a head shorter than me, her hair cut in a spiked pixie cut, streaked with purple. She offered one tiny hand to me, while looking down a list on the clipboard in her other hand.

"Hi there. I'm Alice. I'm the Staff coordinator. Welcome to Orientation. You can give your luggage to Alec, he'll take it up to the staff residences."

She gestured to the guy leaning against the rock wall of the gardens outside the main office. He scowled halfheartedly.

"Yeah, thanks Allie. I'll get right on that."

Alice laughed, high and tinkling, patting Alec on the arm as he walked by. She smiled, turning her attention back to me.

"You must be Bella. You're the last one of the Lifeguarding team to arrive. Welcome to Pinewood. It's going to be a fantastic summer."

I was unsure of whether Alice was simply overeager, or if she actually knew it was going to be a good summer. Either way, I needed a pickup. I kissed Charlie goodbye on the stubbly cheek and allowed Alice to direct me into the main office to meet Rosalie, the head of Pinewood Resort.

I sat in the stiff leather chair across from Rosalie. She smiled at me, in a way that I'm sure was supposed to be reassuring, but actually made me want to cry. Rosalie was gorgeous. She stood six feet, with hair like sunshine, and crystalline blue eyes. Her beauty did nothing to detract from her intimidating manner.

"So, Isabella. Welcome to Pinewood. Just a few things to go over with you. We'll go over this at the orientation, but since you're new this summer, I wanted to go over them privately, in case you have any questions."

I nodded, fighting the temptation to wipe my sweaty hands on my jeans. Why is it that women are always so much more intimidating than men? Rosalie pushed a folder of papers towards me,

"This is our staff code of conduct. It outlines our expectations for behaviour, especially once the guests start arriving. In it, you'll find the various offences, and also the applicable punishments."

I glanced down the sheet of paper in my hand. Missing curfew, missing morning rounds, no alcohol, no drugs. No relationships with other staff. Absolutely no fraternizing with guests. Sounded like a fun place already.

"There are weekly trips into the city for staff. Those will be scheduled according to demand for services by guests. Do you have any questions, Isabella?"

I shook my head meekly, hating myself for being so intimidated by Rosalie. She hadn't been mean to me, exactly, but she had made it very clear that rules were there for a reason, and that they would be obeyed.

At that moment, the door opened, and a giant walked in. Yup, an actual giant. He must have stood six five at least, and was filled out with muscle, at least he appeared to be from what I could see behind the giant stack of boxes he was carrying.

"Hi hon. Where do you want these?"

For half a second, I thought he was talking to me. Who in their right mind would call Rosalie _hon? _But then her face melted into a beautiful smile, and she turned to the giant like her world revolved around him. Interesting.

"By the window's fine. Thanks, Em. Isabella, this is my husband, Emmett."

Emmett put the boxes down with a crash against the window, and offered a giant hand to me. I took it, struggling not to flinch at the strength behind his handshake.

"Hi, Isabella. Don't let Rosie intimidate you."

He winked at me, his eyes sparkling with mischief. _Rosie? _Good lord. I smiled back, his spirit contagious.

"Will do."

Rosalie rolled her eyes.

"Get out of here, Emmett. I'll see you for dinner."

She turned her attention back to me,

"Any questions before I show you to your room, Isabella?"

I shook my head. Rosalie stood, her designer heels clicking across the marble floor as she led me out the door into the sunshine.

The staff dorms were gorgeous. I could only imagine what a guest room here must look like...the walls of my room were cream coloured, with a huge window against the wall where the afternoon sun was streaming in. There were two beds, one with a violet and yellow bedspread, and one with a plain cream coloured bedspread, my luggage stacked at the end of it. Rosalie gestured at the other bed,

"Your roommate, Victoria, has already moved in."  
As she said it, a gorgeous redhead emerged from the ensuite bathroom, her hair hanging in glossy ringlets around her face.

"Hi! I'm Vickie. Nice to meet you."

She extended one hand, which had several rings and bracelets and bright orange nailpolish on it. Rosalie frowned, but before she could speak, Vickie laughed,

"Don't worry, Rosalie. I know the rules. I'll remove it before guests arrive."

I shook her hand, which was cold and a little clammy. Rosalie nodded curtly.

"Well then. I'll see you both at dinner. Enjoy the rest of your afternoon."

She walked from the room, her heels clicking down the hallway. Victoria flopped down on her bed, watching as I began to unpack.

"So you're the new lifeguard. That's so exciting!This is my second summer here. Come on, you can unpack later, let's go find the boys."

She took me by the hand, and I was hit by a wave of patchouli. Good grief, my roommate the hippie. Victoria could have easily fit into the 1960s, with her tie-dyed sundress, bangle bracelets and rings, and flip flops.

"Jake! Jas!"

She hollered as she led me down the hall towards the common room. Two boys were flopped on the couch, engaged in a game of Call of Duty. I snickered. One thing Mike had taught me well was COD. I could kick both these boys asses. The dark haired one looked up at Victoria. The blonde took the opportunity to shoot him, and end the game.

"Gotcha."

He turned, looking us over, and I was surprised at the clarity of his blue eyes. He stood up, offering his hand.

"Hi. I'm Jasper."

_Hii, Ah'm Jahsper. _His southern drawl made me smile, and his hand was warm against mine. The other boy, his dark hair falling in ringlets into even darker eyes offered his hand as well,

"Riley. Nice to meet you..."

"Bella."

Victoria beamed,

"I finally have a roommate!"

Jasper rolled his eyes.

"Didja ever think the reason you didn't have a roommate is cause no one likes you?"

Victoria glared at Jasper, but he winked, giving his sarcasm away.

"Do you guys know where Jake is?"  
Riley shrugged,

"He was still unpacking last I saw of him. He's probably in our room."

Victoria grabbed me by the arm again, dragging me out of the common room.

"Bye guys. Nice to meet you!"

I called over my shoulder, to their laughter.

"Come on, man. One more game!"

Riley whined petulantly at Jasper.

The boys' room, down the other side of the hallway, was exactly the same as ours, except for the third bed, shoved against the wall next to the bathroom. Standing over the third bed, folding teeshirts, was the most beautiful creature I'd ever seen. Victoria strode over to him, spinning him to face me. I tried not to stare at his body—washboard abs, on display for all the world to see, lines of muscle down his arms.

"Jake, this is Bella. My new roomie!"

Jake smiled, and I swear to god I nearly fainted. His dark eyes sparkled as he took me in.

"Hey Bella. Nice to meet you."

He held out one hand, and I shook it, smiling slowly. If ever there was a way to get over Mike...

"Victoria, come ON. We have dinner, and then the mandatory orientation meeting. Who's this?"

A girl with dark brown hair appeared in the doorway, wearing a floral print dress and flip-flops, her toenails painted a vibrant shade of turquoise blue, and her arms folded in a clear bitch stance. Awesome. I held out one hand,

"Bella."

She smiled,

"Nice to meet you, Bella. I'm Angela. And we're ALL about to be late for dinner! Now let's move it!"

Victoria and I followed Angela towards the lavish dining hall, Jacob, Riley and Jasper bringing up the rear. Alice was already there, checking people off as they walked through the door.

"Enjoy your dinner, Pool Crew!"

She beamed as we walked by. It was easy to see why they'd made Alice the Staff Coordinator—her endless enthusiasm and boundless energy made it almost impossible not to like her.

The dining hall was massive, probably seating two hundred people easily on a slow night. The soft blue of the walls was accentuated by crisp white table cloths and a chandelier dripping with crystals cast warm, flattering light around us. Each table had a center-piece featuring huge, floral arrangements with tiny beta fish swimming in the bottom. Whatever they were cooking in the kitchen smelled INCREDIBLE. It was easy to see why the rich and famous came here for their summer holidays.

As soon as we were seated around the table, Angela began speaking, at us more than to us, her mouth moving a million miles a minute as she explained that we would have house rules this year—not like last year had been, apparently.

"As Head Guard this year, I want to establish an environment...conducive to following the rules. For the health and safety and well-being of everyone. So let's be clear: we WILL be following the resort staff rules this summer, especially curfews."

Jesus, what a goodie two-shoes. Jasper smirked, trading looks with Jacob across the table and Victoria rolled her eyes beside me.

Dinner consisted of some kind of soup, chicken with wild rice, and pie...oh the pie. So simple, and yet it was the best meal I'd ever eaten, bar none. As we were scraping the last bites of pie into our mouths (cherry—seemed appropriate), Rosalie took the stage at the front of the dining hall, tapping on the microphone to get our attention,

"Good evening ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to another season at Pinewood. You've all been issued a copy of the staff rules, in writing, so despite what the temptation may be, we expect that you will follow them fully, and we appreciate your cooperation. Furthermore, please note that violations will be punished. Other than that, let's have a wonderful summer. Guests begin arriving the day after tomorrow, and they will be expecting the highest standards of service. Let's give it to them. Thank you everyone. Please meet Alice outside for a brief introductory meeting after dinner."

Rosalie stepped down, her heels clicking on the floor as she walked away. There was silence in the hall.

We settled on the grass, forming a loose semi-circle under the sunset as Alice bounced into view, carrying a box of sour sugar candy. I love sour sugar candy. The girl already had me won over. As the box made its way around the circle, Alice asked us each to introduce ourselves.

"I'll go first," she smiled, "I'm Alice, Allie is fine, I'm twenty-three. This is my third summer up at Pinewood, and I'm serving as Staff and Activities Coordinator as well as Emergency First Aid attendant this year."

Jacob sat to her left, his hair curled softly at his shoulders, his eyes sparkling with mischief,

"I'm Jake. Twenty-two. This is my second summer up here. Pool Crew. For life."

He made some dorky sign against his chest, exchanging a nod and smirk with Jasper, sitting across the circle from him. Riley took a giant handful of sour candy, stuffing two into his mouth before muttering,

"Riley. Twenty. First summer up here. Lifeguard."

"Good grief, Riley. Say it, don't spray it," Victoria snickered, grabbing the box of candy from him. "I'm Victoria. I'm twenty-two. This is my second summer up here. Lifeguard."

She passed the box to me, and I took a handful of candy,

"I'm Bella. I'm twenty-one, and this is my first summer up here. Lifeguard."

I passed the box to the petite brunette sitting next to me. She didn't take any candy, but murmured,

"I'm Jane. I'm twenty-four. This is my fourth summer up here. I'll be running the Equestrian program this summer."

She passed the box on to the Alec, who had brought in my luggage, and I wondered if I didn't detect a hint of bitterness in her tone.

"I'm Alec. I'm twenty-three. This is my second summer up here. I run the gym. Personal trainer."

Angela took the box, grinning widely,

"I'm Angela. I'm twenty-two. I'm Head Guard this summer. Oh, and it's my third summer up here."

Jasper took the box of candy from her, taking a bite before drawling,

"Ah'm Jasper. Pool Crew for life, bros. Third summah up here."

Several more boys introduced themselves as Sam, Jared, Seth, Quil and Embry and all five were kitchen staff. A shy, soft-spoken boy, Eric introduced himself as trail and hiking guide, and Tyler, sitting next to Alice, worked the docks on the lake, renting boats and canoes to the patrons. It was immediately clear to me why the lifeguards outnumbered almost all the other staff—we had the pool, and the lake to keep safe. Alice grinned as the box of candy was returned to her.

"Great. Well, it's good to get to know all of you guys. We're going to have an awesome summer. Just a reminder, ladies, that nailpolish must be clear and no jewellery is to be worn except for earrings. And guys, cleanshaven, alright? This isn't no-shave November."

A chuckle rippled around the circle. Alice smiled,

"If you guys have any problems, questions, concerns, whatever, or even if you just want to chat, please don't hesitate to come see me. We'll go over things in more detail tomorrow at full-orientation, when everyone will get to see where they'll be working, etc. You guys are free to go. Have a good night, and I'll see you at breakfast. Oh, guards, we'll spend some time running simulations tomorrow, okay? Bring your swimsuits!"

She smiled, waving us off into the dusk.

Unsure of what happened now, I fell into step beside Jasper, sucking on a cherry sour gummy. He grinned at me,

"Bella, Bella. First summah up here. We'ah gonna have so much fun."

I nodded,

"Is it always so...strict?"

Jasper laughed, a rich full sound that echoed around us,

"Nah. It's a fun place to work. There's a very fine line between what you can get away with and what you can't...you'll figure it out. We'ah havin' a...gatherin' tonight, if you and Vic wanna join us. Out by the lake, Vic'll know where y'all ah goin'. I think we'ah gonna be great friends, Bells."

He winked at me as we walked up the front steps into the house. Angela stood by the door, checking us off as we walked in,

"Uh huh, Jasper, Bella, it's almost curfew, let's be on time, yes?"

Jasper suppressed a snicker as I opened my mouth to argue, only to be cut off by Angela,

"Jacob, Riley, almost late as well. In, in. Let's go."

I sighed. If she kept this up, she was going to end up with her panties hanging from the flagpole and shaving cream on her pillow—summer camp, I know, but oh so satisfying when dealing with a bitch.

Victoria was flopped on the bed, nailpolish remover in hand, scrubbing the orange off her nails. I flopped down on my own bed,

"What time is curfew again?"

"Eleven thirty. Technically."

I grinned,

"So, after that, does Angela...go to bed?"

Victoria nodded,

"Undoubtedly. Thank god we don't have to room with her—perks of being head guard, I guess, she gets her own room. She'll probably head count...she seems like the type."

I snickered,

"Well, we better find a way to fake it—the boys are having a "gatherin'" down by the lake, Jasper said we should swing by."

Victoria nodded,

"Of course. And until that time, I vote we pre-drink and gossip! Tell me all about you."

She pulled out a nearly full bottle of tequila and a metal go-cup mug.

"Grab your go-cup. Sippy cup's the only way to get this shit done, especially without getting caught."

She grinned, pouring a liberal dose of tequila into her own mug. I dug through my luggage—still having not unpacked—and retrieved my beat up Minnie Mouse go cup that Renee had bought me at Disneyland when I was ten. Probably not the use my mother intended for my go cup...

"So where are you from?"

Victoria asked as she poured liberally into my mug as well, standing to hide the tequila behind the books on her bookshelf,

"Oh, shoot, hold that thought, I'm gonna go grab some juice. Preference?"

I shook my head, sitting up and crossing my legs beneath me. Maybe Victoria wouldn't be such a bad roommate after all—even if she did look like she had just stepped out of 1964. Victoria returned with a carton of OJ, filling both cups the rest of the way up,

"Anyways, where are you from?"

"Forks. Washington. Not too far from Seattle. How about you?"

"England originally, but Seattle since I was thirteen. You a student?"

I nodded,

"Dartmouth, but I gotta make some money to pay tuition and all. Yourself?"

Victoria laughed, sipping her drink,

"Not really. My folks own a pharmaceutical company...I'm really just here to have a good summer. My family can be so uptight—and so can the rich-bitch folks who come here, so I slum for the summer. Besides, it's not like lifeguarding is hard, and I get to sport a wicked tan. So...any of the boys caught your eye?"

I shrugged, not entirely comfortable discussing my potential love life with Victoria, taking a deep drink from my mug before answering,

"Jacob's pretty cute, I guess."

Victoria nodded,

"Yeah, Jakey's pretty damn adorable. What do you think of the new kid, Riley or whatever?"

I sighed,

"He seems...sweet?"

"Sure, if a little unfortunate...he practically doused me in sugary saliva tonight!"

She laughed, almost manically, taking a deep swill of her drink just as Angela walked through the door,

"Alright ladies, just checking up on you. It's officially after curfew, so let's try to keep it down, alright?"

She fixed us with a beady eyed stare. Victoria nodded, struggling to smother her laughter. I smiled demurely, meeting her eyes,

"Of course, Angela. We're just having some tea, then we're going to sleep."

Angela nodded,

"Good, good."

She walked out the door, leaving Victoria practically in stitches,

"Oh my GOD, Bella, you're the best liar ever!"

I shrugged, finishing the rest of my drink. My body was beginning to feel pleasantly warm, and I was beginning to feel more and more inclined to go find the boys.

"My dad's a cop."

I stood up, pulling a sweater over my tee-shirt,

"What do you think, should we go find the guys?"

Victoria shook her head,

"Angela is definitely going to come back to check beds."

I shrugged,

"So? Let's get it together and make it look like we're still here."

Five minutes later, Pillow Bella and Blanket Victoria slept soundly in the dark and Victoria and I slipped out the window and into the dark, mugs in hand. It would appear I was reinventing myself—the girl who scored straight A's into Dartmouth would never have lied to an authority figure or made pillow figures to escape into the night. Maybe my year, what with Mike and the stress of keeping my grades up, followed by first year uni, had changed me...

_Tick. Tick. _The pebbles bounced off the boys' window, but they were apparently otherwise engaged. Victoria looked at me, her eyes bewildered. I shrugged,

"Boost me up."

"Are you crazy?"  
"Nah, it'll be fine. I'll just tap on the glass. Come on, Vic."  
She glared at me, but laced her fingers together so I could put my foot in. The window was higher than ours—probably ten feet off the ground, but a gnarled tree grew up the side of the house, so I was confident I'd be able to make it up. I toed off one flip flop, placing my bare foot into Victoria's hand,

"Ready? On three...one, two, THREE."

Grabbing the tree branch with one hand, I hoisted myself up into the air, smacking my hand against the boys' glass as I pulled myself up to window height, transferring my grip to the window sill. Strong hands gripped my upper arms, yanking me upwards, pulling me through the window, where I tumbled unceremoniously into a puddle of limbs on the hardwood floor, Jacob standing over me, grinning like the cat that ate the damn canary,

"Well hey there, Bella."

Jasper turned from where he was pouring vodka into a cup,

"Bella, Bella, spyin' already?"

Riley laughed from his perch on the bed, clearly already a little tipsy, a bag of Cheetos in his hand, his fingers stained bright orange.

"Nope, Vickie and I were wondering when y'all are gonna get this little 'gatherin' together."

I winked at Jasper, purposely drawing out his accent. He grinned,

"Well, in that case, girl, let's gett'er done."

Jacob grinned,

"Alright! Sexy girl falls through our window to take us out to paaaaar-tay! Pool crew for life, yos."

He and Jasper fist bumped through the air from across the room. Riley just snickered, stuffing more Cheetos into his mouth. Lovely. On the other hand, sexy girl? Now there was a nic-name I could live with. Jasper flipped out the lights, the three amigos not even bothering to make it look like they were in bed asleep, and jumped out the window. Jacob followed him, and held his arms out for me so that I didn't fall. What a gentleman. I grinned, sitting up in his arms,

"You gonna carry me down to the lake, honey?"

He grinned down at me,

"Sure thing, sweetheart. Just let me help Ri-"

Riley chose that exact moment to launch himself out of the window, landing in a tangled pile of limbs with Jacob and I, knocking the wind right out of me. Victoria stood next to Jasper, both of them bent double from laughing so hard, their hands resting on their thighs as they took in the situation.

"C'mon boys and girls!"

Alice appeared next to Jasper, her eyes bright and excited. I was a little surprised to see her—wasn't she supposed to be in some sort of managerial position? It took serious skill to manoeuvre friendship and management. Slowly, we disentangled from each other, meandering towards the lake. It was a gorgeous night, the stars glittering overhead, the moon casting delicate light onto the lake. There was a soft breeze that whispered through our hair, and, as Jake offered me his go-cup, I was suddenly very glad I was working here for the summer.

The path we were wandering along took a sharp dip through a dense patch of woods and emptied out on a secluded beach, a bonfire already burning and the lake lapping gently against the sand. Like everything else at this resort, it was beyond beautiful. Music pounded from speakers that had been ingeniously set up against the rocks, plugged into an extension cord that no doubt stretched from far away. I was surprised that we hadn't heard the music coming in, but I suppose that's why this beach was used. The smell of pot hung heavy in the air.

No drugs, no alcohol, no missing curfew…Jasper winked at me, walking to settle on a log next to Alice,

"Bella, Bella. Welcome to Pinewood."


End file.
